The last seven years have seen a rapid deterioration in world peace and the cost of global violence was put at $1,350 per person, according to an index measuring world peace as several countries slid down the index into civil war and violence.

The economic cost of dealing with world violence stood at $9.8
trillion, or 11.3 percent of total global economic output – as
much as the economies of Britain, France, Germany and Italy
combined, according to new research by the Institute for
Economics and Peace (IEP).

The pattern reversed the 60-year trend in more peace after the
end of World War II.

The index was measured gauging conflict, unrest, safety and
security as well as militarization and defense spending.

“Given the deteriorating global situation we cannot be
complacent about the institutional bedrocks for peace,” said
Steve Killelea, the IEP’s executive chairman, Reuters reported.

“This is a wakeup call to governments, development agencies,
investors and the wider international community that building
peace is the prerequisite for economic development,” he
added.

The decline in world peace is not being felt round the world
evenly. While 51 countries had improved levels of peace since
2008, 111 had deteriorated.

Syria has pushed Afghanistan out of the No. 1 spot for the
world’s least peaceful nation, as the bloody civil war continues
there for a third year.

Iraq was ranked 159 out of 162 countries before the latest
bloodshed unleashed by the ISIS Sunni militants.

South Sudan, the world’s newest country, came 160 as it slides
towards a full-blown tribal civil war just three years after its
birth, which was itself a result of a lengthy conflict with
northern neighbor Sudan.

Elsewhere in Africa, the Central African Republic saw a marked
deterioration in peace, although Somalia and the Democratic
Republic of Congo have been locked in violent internal conflict
for a number of years, so their low peace rankings were not a
surprise.

Perhaps a surprising country that has slid down the index is
Russia, as the domestic political situation and relations with
neighboring Ukraine begin to take their toll. Ukraine itself also
became less peaceful.

Other countries that have seen a marked deterioration in peace
were Libya and Egypt. In China, increased military spending saw
it drop to 108th position.

The IEP predicts that things could get worse, with 500 million
people living in countries at risk of becoming less peaceful.

Despite the crisis in Ukraine, Europe was still the most peaceful
area of the world, with 14 of the 20 most peaceful countries.

The UK saw an improvement in peace levels over the past decade
and saw the largest drop in total crime of all European
countries. Although London has become safer, certain areas such
as Hackney, Lewisham and Lambeth remain the most dangerous areas
of the country.

Violent crime and homicide was about 10 times higher in the US
than the UK, although overall the US has become more peaceful in
the last 20 years.

Peace levels in the US varied markedly by state, with Louisiana
the least peaceful state for the 20th year running and the South
having the highest rates of homicide, incarceration and violent
crime.

In contrast the most peaceful states such as Maine and Vermont
had better economic opportunities and higher levels of
educational attainment.